More Articles neighbors

comment

GREENWICH, Conn. – Charlotte Searle, 19, of Greenwich has graduated from the National Outdoor Leadership School after having traveled along the Rocky Mountains to complete the Wind River Wilderness course.

This course launched NOLS nearly 50 years ago and still runs in the Wind River Mountains, a wilderness area hand picked by NOLS founder Paul Petzoldt.

During this journey, students abandoned modern conveniences as they were challenged to step outside their comfort zones.

Searle, her 10 course mates and three instructors spent 30 days backpacking in the Wind River Range. During the day, students traveled in small groups and then met at a new camp each night for dinner and classes. They learned about map reading, route finding and hazard evaluation. Instructors also taught lessons on wilderness first aid and cooking nutritious meals.

They hiked to snowy peaks and trudged through muddy swamps. Upon completion of the course, the students had hiked 76 miles and reached 15,500 feet of elevation.

Searle and her course mates graduated as competent and responsible wilderness travelers. They join the NOLS alumni network of more than 221,000 graduates.